Training keeps pace with technology

Feb 1, 1998 12:00 PM, CHARLES G. BEST

Today's technology-savvy security managers are urging service providers to undertake ever more demanding training for their contract security officers to operate the newest access control systems. Many trainers rely on proven principles of instructional design as the foundation of their training. Three evolving factors underscore the importance of staying in touch with basic instructional design principles: - More sensors are being used to protect businesses, which means security officers must sort mountains of data from sensors. - Officers have more responsibility such as making split-second response decisions about incidents that happen in facilities miles away. - There are fewer security officers, because technology has enabled continuous coverage of outlying areas, thus reducing the need for coverage by security officers. Yet in the face of new technology, the intent of training remains the same: ensuring that motivated learners have the skills necessary to perform an action with a standard result. Because of rapid change in the high-tech arena, security officer training requires special considerations, including: - tailoring of high-tech training to the individual officer -not everyone is a technophile; - many complex standards exist - less customization is needed, but may take time; and - replacing the illusion of security with security education - do more with less. It is important to have in place the tried-and-tested methods of instructional design to ensure that training keeps pace with technology.

Instructional design Instructional design is the systematic process of designing, developing, implementing and evaluating instruction. Most training departments consistently use the first two steps of instructional design at every level of formal and on-the-job training. Instructional design sets out rules to follow, which ensure the precise training required to operate complex access control systems for optimum results and measurable outcomes. Using nine basic principles of instructional design, trainers can plan for success.

Step one - needs assessment Needs assessment evaluates instructional requirements by determining why a training plan is needed. Is there a problem that needs correcting or is it a start-up operation? Sampling a work procedure currently in place will identify gaps between what is taking place and what should take place, i.e., a client's desired result.

A needs assessment should be conducted on one task at a time. Performance problems such as slow response to an automatic alarm or lack of documentation after closing out an alarm sequence are reasons enough to conduct a thorough needs assessment for each procedure.

To eliminate gaps in knowledge, officers and clients must be interviewed. The client's business goals may be different from the goals of the security operations center supervisor. Thoroughly evaluate feedback from both parties. Some trainers call this process low-tech data interchange (or talking with the boss).

The needs assessment is complete once the objectives - or measurable results - are clear.

Step two - assess skills and characteristics of the officers One of the most important elements of improving performance training is improving the selection and placement of officers. Assess the compatibility of the officer and the workplace. What skills and traits are needed by the officer to work in the environment?

Take, for example, the skills of a highly competent security officer noted for outstanding service to a client. The security officer was praised for his ability to recognize emotions of building tenants and respond to their needs quickly with courtesy and wit. His forte was interpersonal communications with a variety of people. For his good work, he was promoted to a higher-paying position in the security operations center - one where he had little people contact. It soon became apparent that he would not succeed in the new role - not because of poor training, but because he was placed in a position he was not suited for.

Appropriate placement is a critical instructional design step - one that is often ignored by security departments.

Step two is complete once minimum standards have been set for the people who will be part of the security operations team.

Step three - assess workplace characteristics Determining workplace characteristics covers considerable ground according to formal instructional design principles. This step determines what factors in the workplace affect a person's receptivity to training. Examples of such factors include peer cohesion, support from supervisors, pressure while on the job, job satisfaction, safety and physical comfort.

Two factors are critical to success in a high-tech security operations center: n officer autonomy to make high-level decisions; and n officer degree of difficulty operating the equipment. Operations center officers need to have a high level of knowledge of security's best practices, because the operations center is the hub of knowledge during a crisis. In a typical setting at a hospital, for example, a team of 28 officers is responsible for interpreting sensors in a network of buildings across six cities. Without first having the "big picture" of security, training in the operations center would be ineffective. Basic security knowledge of each of the six locations is needed. Officers need to know how to make long-distance decisions and how to take action on the varying information and detection alarms. Without knowing the consequences of their actions or non-actions in each location, officers are just playing video games. Security operations training is not like apprenticeship. An apprenticeship builds job skills by starting a worker off with a small job such as rebuilding the starter motor of a large engine. The pieces of the engine are then built into a refurbished engine over time. Each task is a part of the whole that can be accomplished without the other parts. Security operations training, on the other hand, must consider all the parts. At the very least, officers should complete basic classroom training in human relations, legal liability, report writing, alarms and sensors/access control systems. But remember, if a security officer first hears about access control concepts in a high-tech environment, it may sound like a foreign language. Clarify these four objectives in an access control pre-assignment training plan: n permit or deny entry to a place or location; n regulate rate of movement to, from, or within a defined space; n reduce the number of escape routes for intruders; and n protect persons, property or information against unauthorized observation or removal. Also, determine the degree of technophobia in the officers, and remember that whether students are in their 20s or 60s, instructional design must focus on the learner. Steps two and three are complete once it is easy to determine that the person in the new workplace is critical to the system's success.

Step four - set performance objectives What should trained officers do? If performance issues have been noted in step one, this step will clarify what officers do in the normal course of the job as well as the steps needed to finish one action. (An action is a series of steps that has a beginning, an end and can be measured.) For instance, if a sensor detects intrusion at an isolated facility covered by the operations center, what steps are necessary to end the incident successfully? What are the processes in one action? Experienced supervisors have long used task analysis to answer such questions. They know that checklists, a byproduct of task analysis, are important tools for minimizing the risk of skipping necessary steps.

After analyzing an action, it is time for another review by all concerned to validate theresults. The results should be presented to all who are affected by them, including the client and the maker of the high-tech system. The result may be incorrect based on the operating parameters of the system - maybe false readings are indicated or there is a bug in the software. Finally, the analysis should be presented to the supervisors of the officers.

When all interested users are satisfied that an action can be completed with the desired results, this step is complete.

Step five - write down performance objectives Writing down performance objectives defines what an officer will do once training has been completed, and it can be more complicated than it sounds. For instance, rather than spending considerable time training an officer to identify an intrusion alarm and reset it, the higher-level objective may be for the officer to evaluate an alarm condition and respond within one minute. That may seem a vague objective, but some security operations centers monitor overwhelming numbers of sensors, in which case, the most valuable objective would be to prioritize alarm response.

Do not make performance objectives complex. Use a consistent statement to begin each objective such as: "After completing training, officers should be able to ...." If the performance objective is longer than one sentence, it is too long. It should be easily understood by the newest trainee. And remember not to use phrases such as "will understand," "have familiarity with" and "will know how to," because they are not measurable.

This step is finished once the performance objectives are understood by supervisors and officers to be the road signs to success in the operations center.

Steps six and seven - develop performance measurements and prioritize objectives Steps six and seven are grouped together, because measuring performance may indicate that some objectives are badly out of order. That is an important tenet of instructional design: The measurement of objectives and their sequence of training should be defined in unison. The first question is, "How should it be measured?" and the second question is, "Is it in the right order?"

Take, for instance, automated access control systems. Trainers may find it hard to make an automated system comply with performance objectives. Sophisticated access control systems often require officers to clear alarms in a certain order. The purpose of the built-in sequence is to standardize processes for all officers and to raise the quality of service. Many of the measurement systems developed and used by trainers in the past are now built into high-tech systems as a result of using the principles of instructional design.

But even though automated systems come with detailed alarm procedures and can produce measurements of events such as daily printouts, trainers may discover other ways to perform an action that produce different results. They may feel that the automated process is out of sequence, or, worse, incomplete.

Remember: The effectiveness of electronic access control system procedures relies on the decision-making capability of the officer. Sequencing performance measurements tells a trainer whether or not the training makes sense in that order.

An off-the-shelf system that is built for any business may not work for all businesses. Define the events sequence of by determining order of importance, such as: - most important to least; - back to front; - general to specific; - chronological; and - topical.

If your automated system does not offer changes to the sequencing, the trainer may have to build a different procedure. Remember, we are in the business of training decision-makers who use technology tools.

Step eight - design instructional materials to be used in the workplace To a trainer or supervisor, this is the fun part. The materials used during training are the way to get an officer's attention. If materials are not available from a system vendor or off-the-shelf, use your imagination. The possibilities are endless.

Combinations of training include basic classroom, on-the-job, one-to-one, videotape and may include changing the class from morning to night.

Once the classroom portion is concluded, on-the-job training in the center does not have to be "follow the leader." Make the training memorable. Two training methods to consider are constructing an action maze and building a simulation.

n An action maze is a description of a problem followed by a list of alternative actions. It is good preparation for security work, because it creates many learning opportunities and trains officers to make decisions. As the officers follow an incident - either real or imaginary - they make decisions and are guided to find out the consequences of their decisions.

Each option should have a learning point that fully describes the consequences of the actions. Naturally, each option leads to additional learning points. Remember to ask experienced officers to use the maze. Does it work? Is it a test of a real process and grounded in reality? If you detect a similarity to popular CD-ROM games, it is no surprise. Learning this way is fun and beneficial.

n Another effective training tool is role-playing. Often called "simulation," role-playing is a representation of actual conditions. The military uses this type of training in everything from driving tanks to piloting aircraft. If the high-tech system in question has a computerized simulation for training, it is a good idea to test it exhaustively. A simulation should have strict guidelines such as start and stop times and who does what, and it should end with predictable results.

Training an entire team in a decision-making simulation leads to team cohesion. Important cross-training is accomplished during role-playing that cannot be accomplished any other way. This step is complete when it is clear that practice makes better.

Step nine - evaluate the effectiveness of training In this final step of instructional design, measure the effectiveness of the training design - not the trainee. The training should answer the question of what should be done and when. Of all the ways to evaluate training, I recommend a pre-test program or a pilot program.

n A pre-test is an exchange between trainee and trainer conducted off-site or in a non-threatening but structured environment. The advantage to the trainer is that each step of the training material is judged independently. In this one-on-one situation, the trainer can ask plenty of questions about a particular step. After completing each step and documenting the results, the entire process can be judged for effectiveness. Using this method, the trainee can give instant feedback: Does the trainee like the material? Can it be applied to the job? Is the officer confident enough to do the job after using the training plan?

A pre-test is time-consuming when conducted with inexperienced officers who have never used such a structured method, but it provides immediate feedback on whether to change the training methods or proceed to implementation.

n A pilot program is used in the security operations center in a realistic setting. The officers participating in a pilot program are informed that the materials are being tested - not them. Use the same questions as in a pre-test. The trainer's observations are more important here, because the officers are using actual equipment in real surroundings. This process must determine without a doubt the viability of the training and equipment prior to putting officers on the job. When the pilot program is successful, the training supervisor is ready to roll out the program.

Finally, do not focus on failed actions to develop training; there will always be enough of those to fill volumes. Use your team's successes to build better training, and you will create volumes' worth of self-esteem. Good luck and good learning.

Focusing on integrating security equipment and technology with the human element - private security officers - to maximize security system effectiveness, the column draws on the expertise of members of the National Association of Security Companies (NASCO).

The column will feature different writers addressing aspects of the roles security officers play in today's systems.

The author of this month's column, Charles G. Best, is the director of learning systems for American Protective Services, Oakland, Calif.

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